Housing for an extractor hood and ventilator housing

ABSTRACT

The invention relates to a housing ( 1 ) for an extractor hood, comprising at least one ventilator housing ( 2 ), whereby the housing ( 1 ) serves as housing for at least a part of the ventilator housing ( 2 ). The housing ( 1 ) is characterised in that at least one section of an external wall of the housing ( 1 ) is embodied by a part ( 22 ) of the ventilator housing ( 2 ). The invention further relates to a ventilator housing for a ventilator device on an extractor hood, in particular for at least one fan, characterised in that the above has at least one engaging device ( 221, 25, 27 ) for a part of a housing ( 11, 121 ) of the extractor hood.

The present invention relates to a housing for an extractor hood,especially for a flat screen hood, and a ventilator container for aventilation device of an extractor hood, especially for at least onefan.

In extractor hoods ventilator devices, especially fans are provided toestablish a flow in the extractor hood which serves to extract vapourand steam which can be produced for example during cooking. Theventilation devices are accommodated in ventilator containers,especially in ventilator housings, for example, in the form of spiralhousings. For this purpose the ventilator container, which can beaffixed to a base plate, generally has a suction opening which, in thepresence of a base plate, extends through said base plate, and an outletopening which is provided on the top of the ventilator container in thecase of vertically constructed radial fans.

A housing is provided on extractor hoods to guide the vapour and steamto be removed to the suction opening of the ventilator container. Thishousing together with the base plate, for example, can create a guidechannel for the air to be removed to the suction opening of theventilator container. Furthermore, the housing of the extractor hoodgenerally serves to accommodate the ventilator container to avoidcontamination of the container or of lines running to or from thecontainer.

Housings of extractor hoods generally consist of a plurality ofindividual parts which are joined together by means of screw connectionsfor example. The individual parts of the housing generally comprise acover, which can have an opening for the outlet opening of theventilator container, as well as two side walls, a rear wall and a frontcover.

The disadvantage of this known structure of housings for extractor hoodsis that as a result of the necessary screwing and the large number ofindividual parts, assembly is difficult and in addition, increased costsare incurred during the manufacture of the individual parts and theassembly.

It is thus the object of the present invention to provide a housing foran extractor hood and a ventilator container for a ventilation device ofan extractor hood which can be manufactured simply and inexpensively andallows simple and inexpensive mounting and dismounting of these partsand therefore the extractor hood.

The present invention is based on the knowledge that at least individualparts of the housing of the ventilator container can fulfil severalfunctions.

The object of the present invention is solved according to a firstaspect by a housing for an extractor hood, wherein the extractor hoodcomprises at least one ventilator container and the housing serves ashousing for at least part of the ventilator container. The housing ischaracterised in that one section of an external wall of the housing isformed by a part of the ventilator container.

The ventilator housing in which one or a plurality of fans of anextractor hood are running is designated as the ventilator container inthe sense of this invention. Such ventilator containers can thus be, forexample, the housing of a radial fan, a spiral fan housing or the like.

The housing of the extractor hood is understood in the sense of thisinvention as the housing which accommodates the ventilator container atleast partly and which therefore serves at least to cover part of theventilator container and optionally further elements, such as cables forexample. The housing can further serve to form the compartment in whichthe vapour and steam to be removed to a suction opening of theventilator container is guided. By using a part of the ventilatorcontainer as a section of an external wall of the housing, it is notnecessary to use a separate housing part for this section. The number ofindividual parts of the housing and their size can thus be reducedwhereby the manufacturing and assembly costs can also be reduced.

The section of the external wall of the housing formed by a part of theventilator container advantageously forms a section of the top of thehousing. The area which needs to be covered by a separate cover of thehousing can hereby be minimised and the provision of a separate covercan optionally be completely omitted.

Especially in areas where no further devices are provided on theventilator container, the ventilator container itself can serve as partof the housing for the extractor hood. Especially in the area around theoutlet connecting piece forming the outlet opening of the ventilatorcontainer, the outside of the ventilator container can be used as partof the housing. The outlet connecting piece must in any case project outfrom the housing for the extractor hood for the connection with a wasteair pipe or for the inlet into a waste air shaft so that the area aroundthe outlet connecting piece of the ventilator container can simply beused as a section of the top of the housing for the extractor hood.

The part of the ventilator container forming a section of an externalwall of the housing advantageously has the form of a plate. In the senseof this invention a part of the ventilator container which has asubstantially flat surface is designated as a plate. Using such an areaof the ventilator container as part of the housing for an extractor hoodcan ensure a smooth surface of the housing of the extractor hood whichis especially important in relation to the deposition of impurities. Theplate is preferably formed in one part with the ventilator container.

According to a preferred embodiment, the housing comprises two sidewalls and at least one part of one of the side walls forms a section ofthe top of the housing.

By configuring at least one of the side walls of the housing such thatat the same time this forms at least a part of the top of the housing,the area which needs to be covered by a further component on the surfacecan be reduced.

At least one of the side walls preferably has a bent region at its upperedge. This bent region can be used to form the top of the housing. Thebent region is preferably embodied as one part with the side wall. Sucha side wall can be manufactured for example by bending. As a result ofthis simple manufacture of a side wall which at the same time forms asection of the top of the housing, the manufacturing costs can bereduced compared with a housing where the side wall exclusively formsthe side of the housing and a cover must be screwed onto the side wallfor covering the top.

According to a preferred embodiment, at least a part of the area of theside wall which forms a section of the top of the housing can be broughtinto engagement with at least one region of the ventilator container. Asa result of this engagement, a form-locking connection is preferablyachieved between the side wall and the ventilator container. Theengagement of the part of the side wall forming a section of the top ofthe housing, with the ventilator container can be accomplished forexample by inserting this part of the side wall into a groove on theventilator container. The engagement of these two components produces aconnection which can make any screwing together of these two componentssuperfluous.

According to a further embodiment, a rear wall of the housing can bebrought into engagement with the ventilator container in the area of thetop of the housing. In this case, also the engagement is preferably aform-locking connection which makes it possible to fix the rear walldirectly on the ventilator container. Screwing the rear wall onto afurther part of the housing, for example, the side walls of the housing,can hereby be eliminated. Assembly is thus considerably easier. Theengagement of the rear wall with the ventilator container can beaccomplished, for example, by means of a bent region provided at therear wall. This bent region can be embodied, for example, in the form ofa flange.

According to a further aspect of the invention, the object forming thebasis of the invention is solved by a ventilator container for aventilation device of an extractor hood, especially for at least onefan, wherein this has at least one engaging device for a part of thehousing for the extractor hood. A simple type of fixing of the housingparts is provided by providing engaging devices for housing parts. Inthis case, the engaging device preferably comprises at least onereceiving area for a part of a side wall and/or rear wall of thehousing.

The ventilator container preferably has at least one plate-shaped areaon its top. This plate-shaped area can be used as a section of theexternal wall of the housing for the extractor hood. At the same time,the plate-shaped area can constitute at least one part of the engagingdevice for further housing parts. The plate-shaped area on theventilator container is preferably configured so that it extends fromthe outlet connecting piece of the ventilator container over at leastpart of the width and depth of the housing for the extractor hood. Thisplate-shaped area can thus form at least a section of the top of thehousing and is embodied in one part with the ventilator container, whichfacilitates assembly.

The features and advantages of the housing apply accordingly and as faras is applicable to the ventilator container.

The present invention is described in further detail subsequently withreference to the appended drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1: shows a perspective view of a housing according to the inventionshown from behind,

FIG. 2: shows a perspective view of a ventilator container according tothe invention with a side wall of the housing,

FIG. 2 a: shows a detailed view of the connection of the side wall andthe ventilator container,

FIG. 3: shows a perspective view of a ventilator container with a rearwall,

FIG. 3 a: shows a detailed view of the connection of the rear wall withthe ventilator container.

The embodiment of the housing for an extractor hood according to theinvention shown in FIG. 1 comprises a rear wall 11, a front cover 13 andtwo side walls 12. The side walls 12 extend over the total height of thehousing 1 and each have a bent area 121 at the upper edge. In theembodiment shown these bent areas 121 form a section of the top of thehousing. The further section of the top of the housing 1 is formed by apart 22 of a ventilator container 2 which is accommodated in the housing1. In the bent area 121 of the side wall 12, gaps can be provided which,as shown in FIG. 1 can serve as the opening for components. In theembodiment shown the gap serves, for example, as the opening for areceptacle 24 for the mains connection of the ventilation device. Thisreceptacle 24 is thus accessible outside the housing 1 without needingto dismantle parts of the housing 1. The plate-shaped area 22 of aventilator container 2 which is described in more detail later withreference to FIGS. 2 and 3 extends over the depth of the housing as faras the rear wall 11 of the housing 1. Over the width the plate-shapedarea 22 extends from the edge of the bent region 121 of one side wall asfar as the edge of the bent region 121 of the second side wall 12. Inthe bent region 121 of the side wall 12, which extends on the top of thehousing 1, the width of the side wall is designed so that this extendsfrom the rear wall 11 to the front cover 13.

FIG. 2 shows a ventilator container 2 according to the invention with afront cover 13 and one of the side walls 12. As can be seen from thisfigure, the region 22 extends in the form of a flat plate around theoutlet connecting piece 21 of the ventilator container 2. On theunderside of the plate-shaped region 22 the further container wall ofthe ventilator container 2 continues at a distance from the edge 221 ofthe plate-shaped region 22. The edge 221 of the plate-shaped region 22hereby projects over the container wall 25 which goes over into thecontainer regions 23 for accommodating the ventilator, and a groove isformed. In the embodiment shown as can especially be seen from FIG. 2 a,the container wall 25 is arranged at an angle to the plate-shaped region22. However, it is also within the scope of the invention to initiallyconstruct the container wall 25 perpendicular to the plate-shaped region22 and then make it run parallel to the plate-shaped region 22. Thegroove formed between the container wall 25 and the edge 221 of theplate-shaped region 22 forms a receiving area for the edge of the sidewall 12. The side wall 12, especially the bent region 121, can beconnected to the ventilator container 2 by inserting in the directionindicated by an arrow in FIG. 2 a. In addition to this connection byengaging in the groove on the ventilator container 2, the side canadditionally be connected to the ventilator container 2 by locatingdevices. For example, lugs (not shown) can be provided on the edge ofthe side wall, which can cooperate with openings (not shown) in the areaof the edge 221 of the plate-shaped region 22.

As is further deduced from FIG. 2, a projection 27 is providedunderneath the plate-shaped region 22 on the ventilator housing 2, whichextends in the form of a strip perpendicular to the ventilator container2 and is directed towards the rear wall 11 which is not shown in FIG. 2.

A gap into which a part of the rear wall 11 can be inserted is formedbetween the upper edge of this projection 27 and the underside of theplate-shaped region 22. The part of the rear wall 11 which cooperateswith the gap between the edge 221 and the projection 27 can, forexample, be a flange which can be provided on the rear wall 11, at leastin the area of the projection 27.

Alternatively, a longitudinal groove, for example, underneath the edge221 of the plate-shaped region 22, can also be provided as an engagingdevice for the rear wall 11 on the ventilator container 2, which allowsengagement of a flange or another projection of the rear wall 11.

As can be seen from FIGS. 2 and 3, the space for guiding the vapour andsteam to the suction openings of the fan container 2 is defined at thefront by the front plate 13 and is defined at the top and towards theventilator container 2 by a base plate 26.

The present invention is not restricted to the embodiment shown. It isalso within the scope of the invention to configure the side walls ofthe housing so that they extend over a larger area of the top of thehousing than that shown in the figures. The bent regions of the sidewalls can, for example, extend as far as the outlet connecting piece ofthe ventilator container. In this case, a groove can be provided on theoutlet connecting piece into which the edge of the side wall can engage,which in this embodiment then has a corresponding gap for the outletconnecting piece.

Alternatively it is likewise possible to configure the ventilatorcontainer so that a plate-shaped region extends substantially over theentire width of the housing from the outlet connecting piece of theventilator container. Side walls having the form of a flat wall andmerely comprising a narrow flange at the upper edge can then beconnected to this broad plate-shaped region.

The engaging means for engagement of the housing parts with theventilator container are not restricted to the designs shown. It is alsopossible to provide a groove at the edges of the bent areas of the sidewalls into which a plate-shaped region of the ventilator container canengage for example. Likewise, a groove can be provided on the rear wallwhich can cooperate with a plate-shaped region in the same way. Inaddition to or alternatively to providing grooves for inserting parts,locating devices can be provided at the connecting points between theventilator container and side wall or rear wall, for example, in theform of lugs and openings or clips.

Thus, especially when integrating parts of the cover into the ventilatorcontainer, the present invention only requires two side walls which formthe cover together with the ventilator container. Thus, the provision ofa separate cover part can be omitted. Screwing side parts to a cover isalso no longer necessary. The present invention therefore considerablyreduces the assembly time for the housing of the extractor hood andtherefore the entire extractor hood. The number of parts required toassemble the housing is furthermore reduced since a separate cover partcan be omitted. Finally, screws are saved since these can be superfluousfor connecting the side walls to the ventilator housing to form the topand for connecting the side sections to the rear wall.

1-12. (canceled)
 13. A housing for an extractor hood, comprising: atleast one ventilator container; the housing serves as a housing for atleast part of said ventilator container; said ventilator containerarranged at least partly in said housing; and one section of an externalwall of said housing is formed by a portion of said ventilatorcontainer.
 14. The housing according to claim 13, including said sectionof said external wall of said housing formed by said portion of saidventilator container forms a top section of said housing.
 15. Thehousing according to claim 13, including said portion of said ventilatorcontainer forming said section of said external wall of said housing islocated in the area of an outlet connecting piece of said ventilatorcontainer.
 16. The housing according to claim 13, including said portionof said ventilator container forming said section of said external wallof said housing has the form of a plate.
 17. The housing according toclaim 13, including said housing includes two side walls and at leastone part of one of said side walls forms a section of the top of saidhousing.
 18. The housing according to claim 17, including at least oneof said side walls has a bent region at its upper edge.
 19. The housingaccording to claim 17, including a part of said area of said side wallwhich forms said section of said top of said housing can be brought intoengagement with at least one region of said ventilator container.